St. Louis Multifamily Report – October 2026
Occupancy and asking rents are improving despite economic slowdown.
The average advertised asking rent in St. Louis was up 0.1 percent, on a trailing three-month basis through August, to $1,361. Although the national figure outperformed in the short term, with rates up 0.2 percent on a T3 basis, to $1,773, area rent growth mostly stayed above U.S. averages over the past three years. Meanwhile, occupancy in stabilized assets stood at 93.8 percent as of July, improving 10 basis points over 12 months and accounting for a rare improvement in 2026.
St. Louis job movement remained negative through June, with the rate down 0.2 percent against the flat national rate of growth. Construction led job growth (12,600 positions), but six of 10 employment
sectors recorded net losses. The area unemployment rate stood at 3.8 percent as of July, 30 basis points below the U.S. figure, according to preliminary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Metro St. Louis has no shortage of ongoing and planned megaprojects, including a 2,100-megawatt combined-cycle natural gas plant, Boeing’s $1.8 billion Advanced Combat Aircraft Facility, a $3 billion airport revamp and a couple of large-scale data centers.
Developers delivered 981 units in the first eight months of 2026. That accounted for 0.7 percent of existing stock and was roughly half the national pace of completions. Multifamily deal flow also remained limited, with investors trading $215 million in assets year-to-date through August.
